Mexican Meatloaf gives a spicy twist to a classic favorite with roasted jalapenos, chili powder and cayenne pepper for a dinner dish with a little kick made in only one hour!

My refrigerator is in a current state of “Superbowl Hangover”, a random mishmash of leftover ingredients lingering in my fridge following one huge party on Sunday. These ingredients include things like ground beef, jalapeños, bell peppers, celery, carrots and assorted cheeses, so I began to ponder what I could make out of these ingredients.

That is when the idea for Mexican Meatloaf came to me!

Just when I thought I had come up with the next new food craze, I googled Mexican Meatloaf to find I was not the first to come up with such a brilliant idea (dang it!) but either way I threw together my random assortment of ingredients into what may not be the first, but may very well be the best Mexican Meatloaf ever!

Next, roast the jalapeños on the grill. (If you don’t have a grill you can roast them in the oven)

Let the peppers roast for app 5-7 minutes per side, or until black and bubbling. While the peppers are roasting sauté the diced bell peppers, onions, carrots and celery together for 5 minutes.

Next, add the minced garlic to the vegetables and sauté for an additional minute.

After the vegetables are sautéed, remove them from the heat to cool.

Remove the jalapeños from the grill. After the peppers have cooled, remove the skin, then slice into the pepper and remove the seeds. Next, chop the roasted pepper and add to the vegetable mixture.

Now combine the cumin, chili powder, cayenne, salt, pepper and bread crumbs in a small mixing bowl.

Add to the mixture the eggs, sour cream, ketchup and cheese, stir to combine.

Next, add this mixture to the ground beef and vegetables.

Now it’s time to get your hands dirty and mix it all together. Next, place the mixture into a loaf pan coated with cooking spray.

Cook in the oven for 25 minutes.

While the meatloaf is cooking combine the tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, water and chili powder in a small bowl for the topping.

After 25 minutes remove the meatloaf from the oven, drain any juices and spread the tomato topping onto the meatloaf.

Cook for another 15 minutes then remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes before slicing.

I served mine with Jalapeño poppers… part of that whole Superbowl Hangover thing I mentioned (AKA: party hor d’oeuvre’s that didn’t get made due to over-ambition and lack of time!) They turned out to complement each other very well and I would definitely recommend it!

♣ Vegetarian Option: Substitute a sleeve of veggie crumbles and 3/4 can of semi mashed black beans for the ground beef. This was made by my good friend Katie and she gave me the recommendation, thanks girl!

♦ Gluten Free Option: UseGluten Free Breadcrumbs to make this dish gluten-free. Also make sure that the ketchup used is gluten free.

Hi, I'm Whitney! I’m a sports-loving, coffee-drinking, food blogger, the host of “ 29 Minute Meals”, a contributing writer for TODAY Food, cookbook author and on camera food and lifestyle expert, regularly featured on news stations across the country! On my blog, you’ll find most recipes are made in 29 minutes or less, in one pot, or in a crock pot!
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